On her tenth anniversary, Lara Croft is reborn. (Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary (PS2))

Member Name: Sunrisesunset

Product:	Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary (PS2)
Date:	17/08/09 (6 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: setting, music, monsters, puzzles, levels

Disadvantages: short game

Lara Croft returns in a remake of the original Tomb Raider 1. The first game in the Tomb Raider series was produced by Core Design, but this game is Lara's new developer, Crystal Dynamics, to show what they're capable of. Crystal decided to remake the original to celebrate Lara's ten year anniversary, but was that a mistake?

I will be honest and let you know I have not played the original game because I didn't play games back in 1996, and have never bought a Playstation 1 or PS1 memory card to save it on. However, I have been on forums where loyal fans discuss the Tomb Raider series, so I will use what I have read about the original in this review.

Lara Croft is hired to track down an ancient artefact called the Scion by a woman named Natla, but things do not go according to plan. When Lara obtains the first piece of the Scion, a statue where the artefact resided appears to move, one of Natla's henchmen steals the Scion from Lara, and by the time Lara reaches Natla's office this mysterious woman has already gone. The rest of the game consists of Lara tracking down the rest of the pieces and going head-to-head with Natla. Eventually Natla's true form is revealed and the supernatural side of the game takes centre stage.


Best aspects

Settings: This is exceptional in the game. The lighting, environment and music all combine to create a great atmosphere. When you're swimming in beautiful waters the calm, soothing music blends well to calm you. When monsters are about to attack the music abruptly stops, sending shivers down your spine as you anticipate what is about to pounce.

Levels: No level was ever the same. With Lara you get to travel the world, going from real places such as Peruvian mountains to places of legend like Atlantis. One minute you're in an area holding enough water for countless Olympic-sized swimming pools, and next you're avoiding flames shooting from deadly lava below. Every level was beautifully designed and clearly a lot of effort was put into them.

Monsters/Bosses: Like the levels, they are also very varied. In the earlier levels you encounter 'monsters' you may come across in real life, such as wolves, crocodiles and gorillas. Later on the true supernatural monsters e.g. centaurs appear on the scene, and they are far more difficult.

Puzzles: TR is known for its puzzles. The game provides a mixture of puzzles. Some require you to interact with the environment, for example, filling and emptying a room full of water to gain access to levers. On the other hand, fighting bosses are also puzzles because there often specific actions you need to perform to reach the boss's weak spot. Simply attacking them will only get you killed in the end. TR veterans seemed to find the puzzles easy, but a newcomer to the TR series (myself) did not. They were not impossible to figure out, but not a walk in the park either.


Worst parts

Fans had complained that Anniversary's predecessor Tomb Raider Legend was too short- veterans finished it in four hours, and it took me twelve- but the developers made the same mistake again. I spent around 12-15hrs completing it, which doesn't include the times I got killed and had to restart. This was a let down, especially when I paid close to thirty pounds for it, but what was even more upsetting is that the original's levels were longer with harder puzzles. This meant old players got months out of their purchase instead of days.


Basically, if you're playing this game so you can return to 1996 then you'll be sorely disappointed. Things have been cut, changes have been made and this was produced by a new team. Otherwise, this game is worth the purchase, even though I saw no reason to play it again.

Summary: A beautiful but brief return to Lara's beginnings for a new generation of players.